How to Make Lightsabers in Blender (the hard way, and the easy way)

If you feel like supporting things like this! / ianhubert
0:21
Constructing the Lightsaber
0:51
The Hard Way - Rotoscoping the blade
2:31
Masking Foreground Objects
3:07
The Easy Way - Tracking the blade
4:17
Modeled a lightsaber in blender
5:45
The decision we all must take.
Stuff's gettin' a bit TFN2004 in here! This is mostly just me making a video for teenage me from the past.
I use an HDRI from hdrihaven.com, which is an amazing amazing resource.
Download Blender at Blender.Org
Anakin played by Michael Dopieralski

[@weeliano]

Ctrl + H on a selected vertex will hook constrain it to an empty object. As always extreme amount of knowledge in a short video. Well done!!!

[@IanHubert2]

AH! Thank you!! I should have known there was a hotkey!!

[@10hourentertainment14]

Find out how to make an interior in 1 minute.

[@GeorgeMutambuka]

I never even knew you could constrain a vertex to an empty in Blender. I feel like I'm not using the full potential of Blender LOL.

[@martians1028]

@Begin Transformation yes but... better

[@cyberfalcon2872]

@@GeorgeMutambuka is there a limit?

[@KevBinge]

For those of you who are here for more than just “memes and lulz”, this is pretty much an entire semester of VFX school in 6 minutes. Pay attention and maybe save some money lol.

[@SanneBerkhuizen]

Thank you, I really enjoy learning this way!

[@robinsquares]

This is more true than anyone would guess

[@Splatpope]

school is overrated

[@autonaut279]

Sabe A LOT of money bruh. Thanks to channels like this i spend most of my money on hardware upgrades

[@MilezAwxy]

I came for the memez, stayed for the lulz.

[@That__Guy]

I learned so much and forgot so much in only 6 minutes.

[@nikolaos6083]

SAME

[@shakir_ahmad]

Soo true. But I enjoyed it...

[@M1lkshaking]

Yes

[@EyeMCreative]

This is why I save these videos to come back to every once in awhile when I need them or just for fun to help them stick in my brain

[@pesterenan]

With all your lazy tutorials I was afraid that your longer ones wouldn't be so entertaining or useful but booy I was wrong! You strike the perfect line of what I know and what I need to know and present it in a manner that's just plain interesting and fun! Thanks Ob-Ian-Kenobi!

[@sebastianblatter7718]

yes. these tuts are insanely well done!

[@rbjr208]

Let's all just appreciate the fact that he selected an *entire* ring of faces by hand just to show us that there's an easier way xD

[@cdey3886]

I LOVE your humor in your tutorials

[@laJoschi]

The Evangelion Reference killed me and half of the planet

[@ayoraster2970]

What's the Evangelion reference?

[@kolliparaanirudh7530]

@@ayoraster2970 I DO NOT KNOW

[@mrtoastjoky6029]

@@ayoraster2970 wings at the end

[@laJoschi]

6:00 for anyone wondering

[@tomgionfriddo1836]

Tumbling down, tumbling down, tumbling down!

[@fingerman4086]

Couple tips for newbies wanting to use the “hard way” in this video with hooked empties: -If you don’t like the rectangular look, you can bevel the vertices (ctrl+shift+B) and hook constrain each group of vertices rather than just one vertex. Just make sure the bevel is very very tight to the corner, your key framing will also require you to adjust rotation now so be prepared for that. -A comment below talks about efficiently masking your tube. Going frame by frame is pretty painstaking, instead find key changes in motion, start wide and refine until it looks good enough. Frame by frame can look good but not necessary -If your video was shot on a phone, Blender may subtly change the video. This means a screenshot masked over it for the lightsaber extending may create a noticeable box of different colors. You can use the exact same video file instead, set the frames to 1 and change the offset until it’s at a frame where you can mask it. This also prevents cropping issues.

[@therealdealkyle]

how do you select a vertice

[@tiphighter3666]

this 6 minute clip thaught me more than my 3 years at the graphicsschool

[@amitmorang]

Woooooow

[@nudgemepapi]

very c o o l

[@JohnDoe-xo2yf]

Yeah thats basically yt

[@TheOneVoxel]

It seems English class couldn’t teach you either

[@starmorpheus]

That's... pretty sad. Sounds like you got scammed my guy

[@3wayAsiska]

haha funny and smart youtuber!!! best VFX school ever

[@lebronsgrave2101]

When I move the hooks later on the beginning frames begin to disalign and the whole animation is not aligned anymore ?

[@cryochamberlabel]

CTRL+E Extrude by normals.. man I've been looking for that for ages!

[@yourfriendlygamedev]

You could alternatively just hit E to extrude and then right click to escape. Then resize the new faces. CTRL+E is better though.

[@murilokleine]

I usually hit E (extrude) then S (scale) then Shift + X/Y/Z (makes the scale command ignore the selected Axis). The lightsaber on the video could work with E > S > Shift+Z.

[@lebronsgrave2101]

When I move the hooks later on the beginning frames begin to disalign and the whole animation is not aligned anymore ?

[@radhinnasywanabyasa1673]

i cant play vidio in image texture when i press space, any suggestion?

[@asr2009]

@@murilokleine or press alt+E and choose extrude among normals

[@SgtHoggin]

This right here is how I like my tutorials. Snappy, to the point, not burdened with needing to explain every eensy weensy detail like you'll never figure it out otherwise. Bless you Ian.

[@JaredOwen]

This video just made my day! Thanks Ian

[@allaboutflying]

whoa! You use blender? I thought maya! You are truly a major selling point for blender. Your vids could be used for blender advertisements I am a massive fan. Trying to get up to your level

[@PritchettsLaughs]

I have watched all ir videos

[@saipavangantla]

Hi sir I whatch your every video...

[@yourordinaryartist169]

The "Thats when you get 'em" was so hilariously unexpected and I love it.

[@njplay]

What did he do a 3:39 ?!

[@The_Grey_Hour]

Instructions not clear, killed younglings, thought it was child safe.

[@nibblrrr7124]

ctrl + shift + 6 6 EDIT: sorry, forgot to clarify - has to be the 6 on the numpad

[@SuperSlackOff]

Now you are free

[@1234abcd-i6b]

Undo

[@zemanntill]

5:48 "I have the ground of highness" omggg I'm cracking

[@bambangmaulana8121]

This is not IanHubert guys.. IanHubert can definitely finish this under 1 minutes

[@ShatteringKatana]

This is 6.28 Ian Huberts combined to make one 6 minutes 17 seconds video.

[@notsoclearsky]

@@ShatteringKatana 6.28 = 2×3.14=2π = 360° Therefore Ian just 360 no scoped us with a lytsaber™

[@obi-wankenobi2591]

I guess he is getting older.

[@tetsukara]

1 minutes. Really? That’s the most obvious mistake in the world, and you screwed THAT up? Can you even call yourself a human being?

[@teolcd]

Of course he can, just a matter of x4 play speed

[@joemarcus885]

Best blender tutorial I've ever watched. Packed with information that's very widely applicable and very easy to follow as well as entertaining.

[@RenderRides]

I suddenly like lytsabers™ a lot more. *Edit:* I spelled lytsabers™ wrong so I had to fix that.

[@RetroPlus]

That's not how you spell it, its actually spelled "Loight saebors"

[@catdoglover]

Retro Plus Nah man, it’s spelled Luightt Cibra

[@konoacda9935]

The correct way is löeight šcäbër

[@TSiber]

@@RetroPlus it's laser sword

[@manofculture2232]

Nah, it's glowing hot stick

[@RFC-3514]

2:25 - This, while slightly better than "going frame by frame" as suggested a bit earlier, is still a (common) mistake. The efficient way to rotoscope (or manually align things in general) is to start by placing keyframes at very large intervals (several seconds, ultimately the _whole_ clip - i.e., one at the start and one at the end) and then add a keyframe, within that interval, *on the frame with the largest error*. Keep repeating this and you'll end up with the smallest possible number of manual keyframes.

[@gencraigz]

That seems ridiculous when you consider ultimately how much motion the objects go through you will end up having to manually adjust each frame anyway

[@juangabrieleliasgomez518]

@@gencraigz the advantage is that that way you cant ever make more adjustements than if you were going frame by frame, cause it might just work in places

[@gencraigz]

@@juangabrieleliasgomez518 true

[@RFC-3514]

@@gencraigz - You do not. Motion is often linear or uniformly accelerated / decelerated between extremes. Even in very irregular segments (where you might end up having to adjust every frame), setting the endpoints first and then adjusting the intermediate frames from the interpolated position is a lot easier (and you can stay zoomed in), because the distance will be smaller.

[@JustSomeRandomIdiot]

"BUT THAT'S WHEN YA GET EM!" *"HA-HA!"* I loled so hard.

[@manasverma372]

Sir, you're the first to taught me how to do motion tracking and copying location. To the empties. Awesome tutorial. keep on making such tutorials.

[@TheBoomamatic]

The combination lock gag is literally the funniest thing I've seen all day & I've been awake for weeks EDIT: Wait no the Evangelion reference clinched it

[@digerydan8673]

I watched all these tutorials when I first got into blender, not absorbing or understanding anything. now I'm coming back after like 2 years and going "oh yeah that actually is really smart, checks out". can't get enough of these

[@sagred7832]

So happy!! IanHubert is coming with long tutorials. Definitely it is going to be useful.😍😍

[@DanuProductions]

Wtf this channel is violently underrated

[@iAmTheSquidThing]

You can get retro-reflective tape for putting on bicycles and stuff. I feel like there might be a use for that for making tracking markers in applications like this.

[@charlesalexanderable]

Maybe a LED strobe synced to the beginning and end of the shutter in two different colors then it could track all the blur deformation too (or calculate the expected deformation from surrounding frames).

[@chrisdrysdale4311]

I love how this is so blindingly fast I can barely follow it....and yet I am now filled with confidence that I could duplicate this effect without knowing much of anything about Blender. Well done!

[@MattproThe]

5:26 that was hilarous, thanks for the video once again Ian, it's an honor to learn a lot of things from you :)

[@s4fwan]

No one gonna talk about the evangelion reference at 6:00 And cowboy bebop aswell

[@StraveTube]

I did NOT see lightsaber-Rei coming. I'm still reeling. I must've missed the Cowboy Bebop reference. What was it?

[@s4fwan]

@@StraveTube 6:07

[@StraveTube]

@@s4fwan oh man, that's there for less than a second. Well, I don't feel so bad about having missed it. Thanks!

[@XYZ-cp2cv]

@@StraveTube the end. See you space cowboy….

[@GyanPrakash]

Step 1: Delete the default cube. Step 2: Whatever this guy says.

[@midobula4797]

Ok?

[@himanshunayak]

He didn't delete the Default cube in this one, bud...

[@darkflamesquirrel]

Instructions unclear, default cube is trying to delete me

[@marinus4258]

He literally speedrunned a whole VFX school semester wtf

[@akunekochan]

Heeey I like you pfp Also lmao true

[@Lmathison3]

instructions unclear, accepted human instrumentality to spite those who doubted me

[@chuckmcwippy6850]

What a wonderful tutorial, I can’t believe I didn’t know you could set certain faces to different materials on the same object, that helps so much thank you

[@danieleliahushapiro4280]

Now I understand where you get your creativity and composure from! You got some high grade Moroccan quality of ground of highness!

[@ledamdevol]

You make everything in Blender looks so fun to learn even for a beginner like me! Thank you so much!

[@zydeas]

Could you please add timestamps in the description? I'll need to come back to this later when I have more time. Edit: He did it, the absolute madman!

[@drypenguin5174]

so this is why he put timestamps in the description. nice

[@AngelicHunk]

Lmao he added timestamps because of your memeing. What a god. OUR god

[@djC653]

only cause he was taught to love . . . once

[@najminaklukis3421]

*M* *A* *D* *L* *A* *D* *!*

[@summerb9578]

Wow, that was a lot to cover in a short-time. Nicely done and very entertaining. Also enjoyed the Evangelion bit near the end.

[@MikesBigWorkshop]

6:00 God damnit, Shinji

[@myhondoz]

This is the best video I’ve seen on KZbin in a while, made me excited about animation again.

[@AnswersRule]

Yes more of this, yes. YEEEEEEEES

[@sort-o-pop9771]

I've been learning Blender for 5 months now and I still go back to this video to extract all the valuable tips and tricks that can be applied to many other effects. Love this video bro! Great job!

[@josealvim1556]

10/10 now Komm Süsser Tod is stuck in my head

[@LittlePangy]

I swear these videos get better every time I watch them! I love the NGE reference at the end

[@Alumx]

I HAVE THE GROUND OF HIGHNESS *shows a vial with earth and couple of joints* God dammit ian

[@ShaneCasserly]

Alumx oh hey it’s you

[@MrLastlived]

Of course you'd be found here.

[@Ranstone]

@Almux Princess Celest' lightsaber duel when?

[@Marc_Fuchs_1985]

This video is a timeless classic and I come back again and again to watch it. =) Too bad Ian's KZbin art has seized - for now.

[@Vesohag]

Komm Süsser Tod whistle version. Beautiful.

[@thatguyscott3543]

Wtf, I came here because I thought “oh cool, I won’t do it but cool” but... this is the best tutorial I’ve ever seen, I’ve never even animated anything in blender before but now I feel like I can!

[@bodhii]

The way he put the lightsaber behind the latter hit me really hard

[@M8cool]

Could easily be composited in After Effects with masking but this was impressive and good to know

[@shimoricha]

yes, but he cloned himself 6 more times

[@pinywood3077]

Lytsaber! Not Lightsaber

[@CGPacifica]

I thought it was the former.

[@jaycehfilms8741]

@@M8cool yeah, but then you'd need to pay for after effects. also if you did the masking stuff in ae, it would be easier to do the entire thing there, but i actually think it could take longer/be less streamlined there

[@mamabuasili1]

I am not watching your tutorials to actually learn blender but I just enjoy watching them :D

[@aopwm]

Tbh, this is the one time where a shot of Moths being attracted to the Lytesabre would have made sense.

[@dommychi]

They were attracted but they all got burnt

[@lebronsgrave2101]

When I move the hooks later on the beginning frames begin to disalign and the whole animation is not aligned anymore ?

[@shreyaprince6999]

This genuinely might be one of my favourite videos of all time

[@tjkoker]

Outstanding video. And I thought only Adobe After Effects was the lightsaber creator of choice. The force is truly strong in your Blender app. Thanks again.

[@alastairmacgillivray7918]

This is very much the greatest tutorial for Blender on the internet.

[@Hex_JR]

Oh god "The ground of highness" absolutely killed me.

[@OBryanAguiar]

I know it's a tutorial video, but it's by far one of the most enjoyable videos on youtube. Saved on my Favorites playlist

[@Mani_az09]

it's my first time seeing someone that didn't delete default cube

[@markflakezCG]

6 months ago I never used blender and thought this was really hard shit to make. Now I'm really into it and it's way easier to understand. I love it.

[@madmushroom8639]

Where are the moths for realism?

[@MeinVideoStudio]

Seriously the Moths where the best Joke ever :)

[@scottjohnnyhelgemoaune2951]

He already teached them how to love. Why not just add them here too?

[@nikitaelizarov7444]

They all burned like a moth in a lightsaber.

[@vietton6268]

And the ducks , the fishes

[@Nugcon]

dissapointed

[@EvanSaltare]

I've learned something after watching this video: I never want to be a video editor. Thanks for saving me the hassle of attempting any of this. It's not that it's difficult, I just can't see myself going frame by frame regularly.

[@Bzorlan]

If only 13 year old me had known how to do this. All the tutorials back then were about 2 years long and cost more than the laptop I was using

[@lebronsgrave2101]

When I move the hooks later on the beginning frames begin to disalign and the whole animation is not aligned anymore ?

[@Micksoffthings]

I leave this under every video I watched, it helps the algorithm.

[@vichayaouearrepan1602]

Not to sound like a repressed victorian maiden but omg a wrists reveal

[@tahunuva4254]

(in 2050) not to sound like a repressed ticktocker but omg a P reveal

[@flashchrome]

This made me laugh. I got lost after the first thing, I think it was when you said 'blender' whatever that is. Appreciate the humor and skill. Thanks!

[@bDwS27]

I really want try some video effects in blender now ! I have no idea what but now i must do something with footage!!!!

[@HalWaghorn]

So nice to have blender tutorials that aren’t massively boring

[@doko3000]

It's so dense, every single image has so many things going on.

[@brendana6760]

Oddly one of the most enjoyable videos I've ever watched on KZbin, tutorial or otherwise lol

[@stuartdoyle99]

I love watching these videos but I seriously need to start using blender!

[@KHALI_SEAWEED]

Go ahead! When you learn some basic stuff it's so much fun to use!

[@not_herobrine3752]

yea, do wahtever the other guy told you. if this seems too hard, try learning from blenderguru first

[@najminaklukis3421]

Go! The Blender community will support you!!!

[@matchstickgameplay]

Shoutout to this guy for filming this late the night before valentines day.

[@moosedraw3731]

"for I have the high ground" **Is just weed in a jar of dirt** ok that one made me laugh a lil too hard

[@Gooseguy1000-1]

Actually bro, this is such an amazing tutorial. Who knew you could learn certain in blender things so fast?

[@njplay]

What did he do a 3:39 ?!

[@grande1900]

Tips: Make each lightsaber for each character unique to that character as canonically, people have to make their own lightsabers rather than buy one from the market. Also, if you add a more yellow texture (same as copper but yellow) you can put some Electrum bits on their which symbolizes wealth. You can make a Krayt Dragon Stone lightsaber by making it brighter than normal, Trainer lightsabers are usually shorter because... well padawans are shorter because they are younger. Make sure to add a small incline somewhere on it so you can access the crystal.

[@juanfernandojimenezbuitrag2434]

I love this video, Its like a 10 tutorials in 1 and a comedy show at the same time. U are awesome

[@timo1070]

"i have the ground of highness" I'm still laughing

[@DisgruntledPigumon]

People who get high will laugh at anything though so...

[@hyyanbriseno5373]

The

[@blenderzone5446]

wonderful visual effect tutorial. That proves how powerful blender is !

[@studio_yumiruse_2130]

love the Evangelion reference at the end.

[@watching2459]

I just now found this in my rec and I haven't touched Blender in years. Wish this dude was around before I gave up.

[@Cyranek]

i now have infinite lightsaber power

[@squirrelgore]

Cyranek ULTIMATE POWER

[@zyansheep]

omg Cyranek with only 3 likes? lets... fix that. May the *four*th be with you!

[@JackScavs]

@@zyansheep theres 22 now, still not *enough*

[@cromer6249]

*31*

[@fokeyt2632]

@@zyansheep *angry mista noises*

[@NoahLukens]

I have watched this so many times and never made it to the Evangelion reference. Ian you beautiful bastard. I love you. Thanks for all you do.

[@L00PdeL00P]

6:00 I actually died laughing at this

[@turtlesallthewaydown8831]

I understood absolutely nothing and still had a great time watching this.

[@Spoon80085]

"Ive become twice as powerful since we last met, count" *Queue 25 lightsabers floating into the room and start spinning*

[@danehilka4871]

Randomly bumped into this vid and now I'm motivated to switch careers...extraordinarily entertaining for a subject matter I know zero about so that's saying something 👏👏👏

[@luischerubini5994]

Did you make the "Komm Süsser Tod" whistle version too? That's the best part of the video ahah

[@awkwardcultism]

There are many best parts of the video.

[@lebronsgrave2101]

When I move the hooks later on the beginning frames begin to disalign and the whole animation is not aligned anymore ?

[@chotasusofficial4551]

best lightsaber tutorial of all time, period! :D the way you present the subject is amazing.

[@ahjsbkdjhavkcjhvac]

Make a tutorial on how to make a nuke! Btw love ur content

[@kendarr]

The ideia of creating a plane and cutting stuff like the stairs, its magic, its like a way to make visual layers, god its amazing i love it, i use this ideia in so many different ways

[@tehfoxxy9630]

Its like a 6 minute fever dream mixed with a tutorial...

[@bezakuluzelealem1248]

God this guys the best. teaches a lot of stuff without making u waste any time

[@philmsproduction]

4:27 If you want to do it the really pro way: - Go to edge select mode - select a vertical(!) edge loop - select -> checker deselect - select -> select loops -> edge rings - hold ctrl while switching back to face select mode

[@njplay]

What did he do a 3:39 ?!

[@Charduza]

@@njplay lol he entered top view using numpad if u dont have a numpad use the thing on the top right with x y z

[@njplay]

@@Charduza thanks bud

[@jack4fun875]

I decided to watch this for fun just because Im a beginner and like you legit just answered 5 questions I had in this tutorial that is off topic to the video lmao thanks

[@nikitaelizarov7444]

Make a one-minute tutorial on how to make a one-minute tutorial.

[@anish9376]

I seriously wonder where was I in this 2 years... I am in love with these videos...

[@PabloWilard]

i'm watching prospect on netflix, "Riqueza Tóxica" here in brazil. congrats dude! and thanks to your lazyness

[@Yeyo0701]

this guy is a genuis

[@YousifPhotoshopTutorials]

I hate you Ian ♥ and also love you ♥ you're making it so easy that makes me say why i don't do that 😂

[@endofstart9608]

My lord, your tutorial really was helpful with creating my first VFX scene, your techniques are so simple and straightforward. You are doing an invaluable work my good sir!

[@Lensbreak]

Can you make a tutorial how to use 3D tracking to merge real footage with blender CGI? I mean in regard to a more professional pipeline/workflow like using AE 3D tracking data. I still cant find any tutorials which are not base on the very limiting internal bender tracker. I dont want to re-track footage that I already have in AE.. Or maybe show us a way with voodoo tracking software?

[@ReadToasts]

Isn't there a way to import motion track data from AE to Blender?

[@ejss]

something like this? kzbin.info/www/bejne/n2jGmKJpn89sg5o

[@crypt0sFX]

@@ReadToasts Yes there's a plug in. AE to blender.

[@lebronsgrave2101]

When I move the hooks later on the beginning frames begin to disalign and the whole animation is not aligned anymore ?

[@MitchMakesThings]

@@lebronsgrave2101 Pretty sure you've forgotten to turn on auto-keyframing

[@matheusgclassen]

That EVA reference is what made me subscribe, that was so unexpected